While male players Emmett, Simon and George seem loud and at the forefront of their alliances, there are quite a few strong, strategic women who may, or may not be running the show. You decide.
First, we have Dani, who seems to be flying under the radar. But wasn’t she the sole reason Shannon was targeted in the first place? When Simon, the supposed ‘leader’ of their trio, wanted to put votes on Baden, Dani spoke up.
“I disagree. [Put them on] Shannon… because when it gets down to it, Shannon isn’t going to come after you, because she doesn’t have the means. She’s going to come after us two next [Dani and Chelsea], so if it’s do or die, then we’re doing it,” Dani said.
“Now is definitely the time to make a big move,” She continued. “Shannon is a great game player; she came out strong and this is the perfect opportunity to get rid of her. When it comes to the new Brawn tribe, we have a new-ish kind of pecking order. Simons ‘at the top’ and I’m his [next in command], but really, I’m calling the shots.”
Could Dani be the real puppet master here? She currently seems like Simon’s right-hand, and with him taking centre stage as a huge vocal player, the focus certainly shifted off her. Simon listened to Dani, put the votes on Shannon, and if it all blew up she could hide behind him.
Then there’s absolute mastermind, Hayley. With her strategic play, she could either make it far, or blow her entire game up. She orchestrated the shocking blindside of Joey in the original Brains tribe in episode seven, by joining forces with outcasts George, Baden and Wai to completely flip the game on its head.
Then, post tribe swap in episode nine, Wai and Andrew both won individual immunity, meaning the target may have fallen on either Hayley or Baden’s back. In order to dodge a bullet, Hayley pulled the smartest ultimatum out of her pocket for the original Brawns to consider.
“It’s clear that there was a five-four split [Brawn vs Brains] in this swap… the four of us have talked and we do want to stick together with our vote. Now that we have Wai and Andrew immune, I’ve got an idol that’s burning a hole in my pocket, and I definitely plan to use it tonight. So, just to be transparent, my plan is to do scissors, paper, rock on the spot and play it for me or for Baden. So, it gives you a 50% chance of hitting us.”
There are many reasons why this may be the greatest play of the game so far. Not only did Hayley trick the Brawn alliance, who had the majority vote, into thinking they had no choice but to work with her, but she recognised a crack in their alliance and turned them against each other.
Ultimately, the majority alliance was scrambling desperately at her feet, begging for Hayley and co. to work with them. And in a truly boss move, when the time came to play the idol, Hayley didn’t even use it.
Next up is Wai, who has literally been a target from day one. She’s the woman with nine lives, who has constantly done whatever it takes to stay in the game.
Initially aligned with George, Wai was loyal until she was given the opportunity to find a place in the majority alliance, where she flipped and was the swing vote in voting out Cara. She joined, hoping it would keep her safe for at least another day.
Related Article: Australian Survivor 2021: Meet The New Brains And Brawn Tribes
But shortly after flipping, Wai became aware that she was at the bottom of the majority alliance. Wai decided to flip back and work with Hayley to successfully take majority alliance leader Joey out of the game, landing her a strong position in the new majority.
But then tribe swap happened, and Brawn 2.0 spoke about writing Wai's name down at the next tribal. So, she shocked everyone and won individual immunity, keeping herself safe for yet another day.
It looks tough playing from the bottom, but Wai has proven she is the queen of adaptability. She isn’t afraid to jump ship if it means staying alive for another day. She isn’t afraid to make big moves. And she also isn’t afraid to be brutally honest, specifically referring to the moment when Wai shifted from saving Shannon to saving Laura, after hearing about Shannon’s betrayal.
“You know, ultimately I want Brawn 2.0 to be as strong as possible and I think if that’s the case, I’m gonna back Laura.”
The last woman we’re going to fan over, who has completely rocked the game of Survivor is ‘Saint Cara’. Just like Wai, she started from the bottom and worked her way to the top after selflessly sacrificing herself to save George.
Then she used her amazing social skills to get in with the Brawn tribe and when the tribe swap happened, she had a strong, powerful alliance around her which offered protection to both her, and her right-hand man, George. Even he professed that Cara had “done all the hard work” for him.
Without Cara, George would be long gone.
They say behind every strong man is a strong woman. The way things are going in the Outback, the men better watch out, because the women are low-key controlling the game right now.
Don’t miss new episodes of Australian Survivor: Brains V Brawn on Sunday – Tuesday at 7:30pm on 10 and 10 play on demand. Plus, see what Luke Toki and Nathan Morris have to say about the strategy on 10 play’s web series, Talking Tribal